Try as we might without Jesus we will fail

Try as we might without Jesus we will fail!

We always will hear preachers proclaiming the essence of Jesus Christ, but no matter how often our desire is to adhere to that premise that little three letter word of evil, called sin, has a way to upset our quest.

When I functioned as a chaplain for Women in Early Recovery in Pittsburgh, or the recovery hospital for those in substance abuse in Midland, Texas, I constantly questioned how this attraction to use mind-altering drugs, alcohol or illegal drugs, could gain such a controlling grip on people who otherwise were good and meaningful children of Christ.  

There can be moments that do not please anyone when an addictive element can reach out and promise pleasure, release from anxiety, or lift a drooping spirit for just a passing fancy that ends with regret and a path into its grip.  

It isn’t as though each time we fall into an addictive situation is a mortal sin.  However, it can lead the trapped person to seek avenues that are sinful and here is where the devil is on a winning trek to add us to his collection of souls plummeting towards hell.  There are many different types of substances that fall under addictive elements to attract us without counting them as addictions, even though they are.  

Sixty-one years ago, this month of June, I felt the trap of smoking was something I should stop; how many other people have the same desire?  During June there is a week of adhering to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and a good time to use this to overcome an addiction.  As I was reading my bible on Sunday evening I asked what else I could do to make this week more meaningful.  A woman’s voice, the same one that suggested praying for wisdom at a Miraculous Medal Mass. She suggested that I stop smoking.  Monday I took no cigarettes with me but purchased a pack.  I didn’t smoke much of the pack, and when I got home I felt weakened by my desire to smoke.  Tuesday I didn’t take any cigarettes with me and asked for five that day from fellow workers. That night I told Jesus the next day was the first day of abstaining from anything.  My need would be in his hands since I could not refrain from smoking.  If you want me to quit, you’ll have to do it for me.  Wednesday I took no cigarettes with me and did not have the desire to smoke.  That was 61 years ago and I never even had a desire to smoke since then.  I discovered that it is through Jesus that addictions can be controlled, but sometimes an addictive personality fights against that need we might not be able to overcome.  It isn’t because we lost our faith but, this is how a controlling factor will find its way into our lives.

Addictions do not need a specific noun to identify them.  Anything that seems to satisfy a deeper need in our daily walk of just getting through one more moment from an anxious personality can fit comfortably to satisfy an indefinable need that gives us comfort for a few seconds or a few hours.  

Working with those in recovery opened a deeper look into the many weaknesses we all might have and deep down is a child of God with an immortal soul that will cry out for mercy.  How we may respond to one or more souls may determine how their faith in Christ will evolve.

Ralph B. Hathaway